Why is 95% attendance important?
‘Evie’ has 90% attendance… Evie thinks this is good. Her parents/carers and social worker also think it is good.
Are they right?
- What does 90% attendance mean?
90% attendance = 1/2 day missed every week
- 1 school year at 90% attendance = 4 whole weeks of lessons missed
- 90% attendance over 7 years of primary school = 2/3 of a school year missed
If your child is absent, although the absence may have been authorised by the school, it will still cause a decrease in attendance as they are not physically present in school.
What impact might this have on later life?
- There is a direct relationship between absence in school and child’s attainment at the end of Key Stage 2 (Year 6)
- There is also a proven direct relationship between absence in school and qualifications that a child achieves which will impact on future employment.